I've been recently to France and bought some Japanese rice from... Niigata! I immediately thought of you! (Half the price I'd pay for the same here in Switzerland, so I took 5 kilos). It's really fantastic and soooo white and perfectly shaped compared to Yumenishiki which in my opinion goes down in quality every year (it's produced in Italy and I used to like it a lot, but now the grains are less white and lots of them broken... I'm not a specialist but I feel it's no longer the same as several years ago). Anyway the Niigata rice is fantastic... I eat rice imported from Japan so rarely... though I guess it might be just ordinary for you.... https://www.amazon.co.jp/【精米】新潟県産-あかふじ-こしひかり-10kg-平成27年産/dp/B004CII8ZA

I'm glad you got to go to the festival again. I hope the mushroom soup was good, even if they are charging money for it now!

Do you have a favorite type of rice? I wish I could magically send rice to you from here. I have heard rice is expensive, even in Japan. I usually eat California rice, but it is a Japanese variety. I really like it, but I imagine the rice grown in Japan is even better. I love rice! I usually eat a little steamed rice three times a day.

ErinBear: First of all, I have just deleted one of your identical comments. I hope you don't mind.

Bokushi Dori, where the festival is held every fall, is just a 10-minute walk from my house.

One reason why they now charge money for the mushroom soup is, I think, that Bokushi Dori has become much of a tourist attraction, attracting a lot of tourists from Tokyo and other areas, and they can no longer cover the high expense of the soup. Or, maybe they simply have decided to become less generous...

Favorite type? Koshihikari, naturally. Because of its high price, however, I usually buy Koshiibuki, which is as good as Koshihikari and is a lot cheaper (by Japanese standards). I can get Koshiibuki for around 3,500-4,000 yen per 10 kg (22 pounds), depending on the year. I also like jasmine rice!

I also come from Rice country here the South of India. We have white rice and brown rice which is rich in fiber. We even have Black rice which has medicinal properties. People in my state eat rice 3 times a day.Koshihikari rice looks beautiful, white and must be really tasty.